Thursday, June 5, 2014

Historical Images: More Snail Jousting?

I don't know why I keep coming across images of snail jousting in one form or another, but I do. Since I find them strangely intriguing, I will keep sharing them. I hope you don't mind. This image presented itself on Twitter.

Rabbit and snail joust mounted on monkeys(photo by unknown)

It is significantly different than previous images of snail jousting in that instead of the snail being on its own and being threatened by or threatening a knight or being ridden by naked people, the snail is the one mounted and carrying a lance(sort of). It is mounted on a monkey, but not just any monkey like its opponent the rabbit. The snail is mounted on a monkey who is standing on stilts.

I would really like to know what the artist was thinking when he drew this. Maybe the castle cook accidentally threw a few of the wrong kind of mushrooms in the evening stew. What do you think?

If you find these images oddly interesting and wish to see the previous posts that feature snail jousting, here are the links: